Confronting Destiny
by Macalaure
Summary: Spanning several different scenes in the game, Ryu and Katt explore feelings for each other while Ryu tries to come to terms with his fate as the destined child. I'd like to think this was occurring behind the scenes of Breath of Fire 2.
1. Part 1

Howdy, this is my first story. I already have all the chapters written out because I've seen a lot of promising stories that get started and then just die. I know I find it disappointing when that happens so I wanted to make sure everything was written out before hand. If I see some promising enough advice I'll go ahead and change it though so don't let the fact that it is in fact completed prevent you from reviewing.

The first chapter is based on the standard "after Tiga beats up Ryu" part of the game which is pretty much how ever RyuKatt fic starts. Well its cliche for a reason; its the only real in game event where Capcom hints that there may be something between Ryu and Katt. So I guess people have decided to grab on and milk it for all its worth.

* * *

Katt sat alone by the fire, watching the flames climb into the sky. Despite the warmth and light they gave out, the night still seemed cold and dark. The patterns in the flames burned into her mind almost masked the memories of what had happened that day. Almost.

Her thoughts jumped back to the fight. The man she had traveled halfway across the world with, the man with whom she had defeated demons, the only man to have beaten her in a fight. And he had lost, to a sack of fur whose head was so empty it made a hollow sound when hit.

Katt felt sorry for that one. She knew Tiga was a good guy, even if his head wasn't screwed on completely straight. She just didn't think what he felt for her was love.

Katt heard heavy footsteps padding towards her. She kept her eyes glued to the fire until her vision was obscured by a pair of furry legs. Her eyes rose to find Tiga looking down at her.

"What's a girl as pretty as you doing sad on a night like this?"

Katt looked back down. She didn't want to offend Tiga, knowing that they would need him and his men to attack the church tomorrow.

"I'm thinking about tomorrow," she lied.

"Don't worry, I'll be there to protect you," he said, puffing out his chest a little. He looked down, hoping she would be taken by his display of alpha male valor, but her gaze had returned to the fire.

"Thanks, Tiga..." her voice trailed off as her mind was clearly on other things.

Sensing his moment was slipping away, Tiga kneeled down next to Katt and took her hand.

"Tiga..." Katt began nervously. He closed his eyes, leaning in towards her...

Rage took over Katt. The next thing she knew, she was panting heavily with clawed hand outstretched, and Tiga was on the ground with a paw to his face.

Tiga rose shakily to his feet. For a moment Katt was frightened but it didn't look like he was angry with her. "Um...I think I'm going to go to bed now."

"Wait Tiga," She said rising to her feet, "I didn't mean to hit you! I'm...sorry," but Tiga had already walked out of earshot as the last two words spilled quietly from her mouth. Dejected she sat down again. Despite the warmth and light the fire gave out, the night felt cold and dark. But maybe that was just the fire dying.

_Great, now he's gonna hate me, and refuse to help us attack St. Eva's church. I've made a mess of things again. Why did Ryu have to lose that stupid fight._

She heard footsteps coming towards her again. She stood, still looking down, intending to try to make amends.

"Look Tiga..." She began.

"Tiga?" A different voice responded.

Katt turned around surprised, and saw a flash of blue in the firelight. As the figure walked towards the fire, it materialized into Ryu. Katt sighed and sat back down. Ryu sat down beside her looking into the fire.

"I woke up and saw you were missing. I thought I'd find you out here, you've been through a lot today."

Katt didn't respond, keeping her gaze intent on the flickering tongues.

Perturbed by her silence, Ryu stumbled on, "Do you...ah...wanna talk about it." He turned to Katt but her gaze still hadn't left the fire.

_Ask him how he could have lost that fight! And with so much on the line. He was always there for me before, what happened to the Ryu from the coliseum?_

Instead, without taking her eyes off the flames, she said, "Ryu, can you tell me a story."

Ryu smiled. "Once there was a boy who was looking for a girl. That girl could solve a problem that he had. So he left his home and traveled across the continent searching for this girl. When he came across a city that he thought housed this girl he decided to explore it. Hearing that there was a new contestant in the local coliseum, he decided to check it out in the hope that the contestant would be the girl he was looking for. Alas, it was not to be. However, in the coliseum he met a completely different girl. She was annoying at first..." Ryu felt a furry hand bop him on the head, but he continued relentlessly, "But soon they grew to be friends. Together they traveled the world in search of the girl whom they needed to find."

He paused to look down at his friend. Katt was curled up on the log with her head resting on his lap. Ryu reached down with his hand and scratched her behind the ears. He could hear her purring softly, a sound he knew she would never let anyone else get caught dead hearing.

Katt shook off his hand and sat up, "Ryu, I don't want to marry Tiga."

His gaze returned to the flames as he said, "I know. I did what I did for a reason. But I won't let him take you. You mean too much to me for me to let that happen."

"I hit him. What if he doesn't help us because he's angry with me."

"Tiga is...a good guy at heart. I don't think he'll let this issue get between our feud with St. Eva."

Katt looked back to the fire, satisfied with his answer. She leaned her head against his shoulder.

_It's still the same Ryu underneath everything that has happened._

"You're still looking out for me." The last part slipped out without her meaning it to.

"Always," Ryu said as he ruffled her raid hair.

The fire illuminated the two in a bright golden light, and to Katt, the night didn't seem so cold or dark anymore.


	2. Part 2

Here's chapter two. This occurs after destroying the church in Evrai, Tiga's death, and saving Ganer from the pit.

* * *

A cold wind blew through Township. It caught the ranger sitting on the roof of the main house by surprise, and he hugged his legs to himself, wishing he had brought a cloak with him.

Ryu didn't know what to think.

For most of his life he had lived with a small feeble hope that he would see his sister and father again. That was the force that drove him, the thing that made him get up and out of bed each morning. And now, to have found them both in the span of only a few days. He didn't know what to think.

A loud slam distracted his thoughts. He turned around to see a slightly bed ridden Katt climb out of a window. She was carrying a heavy cloak. Ryu smiled as she sat down beside him and handed him the cloak. He wrapped it around his shoulders, and nodded his thanks.

"Cats like high ground, but why are you up here," she said half jokingly.

"It's peaceful here, I like coming up here so nobody can find me."

"Oh..." Katt rose from her seat next to Ryu, not wanting to bother him.

"No, no," replied Ryu, realizing the implications of what he had said, "I don't mind you coming up here with me.

"Oh, okay," Katt said a little uncertainly and slowly sat back down.

They sat in silence for a while, both lost in thought.

"Ryu, what's going to happen after this adventure is over?"

Ryu turned to Katt surprised to see her on the verge of tears. His gaze had been occupied, and he hadn't even noticed that beside him, his friend was in tears. And not just any friend, Katt, who kept her stronger emotions almost exclusively to herself. He felt guilty.

"Before I met you, I didn't mind being a fighter for the coliseum. Fighting is what I do best. But now that I've met you, and we've accomplished all of this," her hand gestured vaguely to the town sprawled out before them, "I can't imagine going back to mindless fighting. And being alone." Her voice trailed off at the last thought.

He put his arm around her. "Don't worry Katt, this adventure is what brought us together, but it isn't what's keeping us together. That's friendship, and it will last a whole lot longer then this adventure does."

Katt smiled and blinked a few times, regaining her composure. She so rarely displayed emotions of this strength, Ryu felt as though Katt had allowed him to see into a different part of her life.

"So what are you going to do, after all this is over?" Katt asked.

Ryu stared out over the village, pondering the question. He hadn't given a lot of thought to what would happen after the world didn't need saving any more. Would he go back to being a ranger? Return to Gate with his father and sister? Suddenly he saw a scene flash before his eyes; a majestic dragon sprawled out over a mountain, appendages covering gated entrances to caves that seemed to delve endlessly into the mountain.

He shook his head, clearing the image, and looked back at Katt. She was smiling now, watching him think. "I don't know Katt," he confessed, "since I've found my father and sister, my driving energy has been to find and defeat whatever is behind this St. Eva nightmare. After that has been extinguished, I don't know quite what to do."

"Ryu, can I ask a favor of you?"

"What is it Katt?"

Her eyes scanned over the landscape of the valley that Township lay in. "When I met Tiga, I was thrilled to have found another woren. And when he fell for me, I was happy. But after that fight with you, I found I just couldn't love him. And now I'm scared. What if we were the last of our clan, and we were supposed to be together?"

Ryu looked at her. Her eyes were filling with tears again. "Hey, don't beat yourself up. Everything will turn out all right."

She blinked rapidly again and stared out across the city. "When all this is over, I want to go out into the world again. If there are any other woren out there, I want to find them." Katt's eyes blazed with a determined light and her shoulders were firm against the driving wind.

"Will you...come with me?"

Ryu smiled, this turn of events actually lifted his spirits. In comforting Katt, he had tried not to show her how concerned he was about losing his friends when the journey was over. Having a new purpose could give them a reason to stay together.

"Of course Katt, don't think you could get rid of me that easily."

It seemed an enormous wait had lifted from Katt's shoulders. In a moment of elation, she turned to Ryu and pulled him into a tight embrace, a completely sisterly gesture of love, and yet she could feel his heart beat faster under his ribs. She felt his body pressed against hers, fitting together like two pieces of a puzzle.

Ryu lay still in Katt's arms feeling the warmth from her body completely nullify any cold he felt from the wind. His heart beat faster as he felt her cheek resting on his. He turned his head slightly, and in the same moment, Katt turned hers. Gazing into deep emerald eyes, he felt her hand come to rest on top of his. They were so close, it took only a slight nod of the head to bring their lips together, embracing like their bodies did, but in a much deeper expression of love.

Elated, Ryu felt his heart lift and his spirits soar, but in the pit of his stomach, he felt a deep, gut-wrenching pain. The memory of the dragon guarding the mountain returned to him. He jerked his head back quickly. With an unspoken understanding, they disentangled themselves and sat a respectable distance away from each other.

On the outside, Katt was a statue, but after seeing her rare display of emotion, Ryu knew she was broken on the inside.

"Katt," he began quietly. She stared off into the distance without acknowledging him, her shoulders shaking slightly. "Katt this can't happen. I am the destined child, cursed from the moment I was born. Everyone who gets close to me is in danger."

He was calm, as always, but the sadness in his eyes betrayed him. And his hand shook ever so slightly as he placed it on top of Katt's.

Katt got shakily to her feet and began walking slowly back towards the window. A few steps back, she turned around. The wind had been blowing fiercely, but now it had lulled for a moment. The blue, windblown hair of the ranger stuck out in strange spikes as he looked out over the town, his town.

"Ryu," the ranger turned around, "when we go to confront whatever is going to come out of those gates, don't be a hero, please, don't be you."

Ryu looked into her eyes. The woren finished the walk back to the window without turning around again. The window opened, Katt disappeared, and then it closed again, not with a slam this time, but a quiet, mournful moan as it slid shut.

Another cold wind blew through Township and the ranger on the roof pulled his cloak more tightly around his shoulders.


	3. Part 3

Last chapter. This one takes place maybe a few days after Deathevn was defeated. A slight cannon change since I wanted a moment between them leaving Infinity and the events that occur at the end of the game.

Again, despite the fact that the story is in fact complete, please leave feedback. Thanks for reading and I hope you've enjoyed. I certainly did writing it.

* * *

So this is what it feels like to be free, Katt thought.

She, Ryu, Bow and Nina were sitting atop a small hill overlooking the town of Gate.

It was all over. Deathevn was gone, and the world was saved. For the first time in her life, Katt had no one to tell her what to do or where to go. It was strange, living without a purpose.

Bow rose suddenly, clutching a few candles in his hand, saying he had some business to attend to with the new preacher of the village.

Across the landscape, a blood red sun rose into the sky. As the group watched, entranced, a shadow flew over it and landed on a house in the village. A beautiful bird, with plumage of pink, purple, and yellow rested atop the house. Nina rose gracefully, she gave a small smile and a slight wave and set off down the hill towards Gate. A few moments later the bird departed the city, now with a passenger.

"Well there goes the beautiful princess and the skirt chaser," Katt laughed.

"But not in the order you would expect," Ryu replied.

Ryu stared at her. In the light of the rising sun, her fur seemed to shine with a brilliance all its own.

"Ryu, I've decided not to go looking for other woren for awhile."

He gave her a puzzled look. "I just feel so calm here. I haven't had a place to call home in all my life, and I'm not ready to give up the feeling just yet. Maybe in a few years, or when I'm old and gray and my fur is falling out in clumps, I'll get some stunning young hero to escort me around the world again."

Ryu laughed aloud. But now she was talking again, and Ryu quickly silenced himself to catch what she said, nearly a whisper.

"I haven't forgotten what you told me after Evrai. You bear a heavy weight indeed. But now that Deathevn is gone, has the burden been lifted?" She glanced at him, not daring to let the last vestiges of hope show in her eyes.

Ryu delved deep inside his mind. It seemed like a long time since he had unleashed the power of Anfini to defeat Deathevn, and he could no longer feel the dragon blood coursing through him. But he still felt vestiges of power within him. And sure enough, buried under memories of sorrow and joy, pain and pleasure, like an egg waiting for the opportune moment to hatch, an eternal flame burned.

Deathevn was vanquished, but not gone. His sleeping form lay in wait as he dreamed of the destruction he would bring to the world when his time inevitably came again.

And Ryu knew that as long as the world was still under threat, the dragon within him would continue to live. After everything that had happened, destiny still had a cage on him. As the destined child, fate had claimed him at birth and refused to let him go. He had never really had a choice, just like his mother.

He looked at Katt, "It's still there."

His eyes glowed with fire, and for a moment Katt was afraid. But instead of shying away, she reached out, grabbed Ryu around the shoulders and pulled him into a tight embrace. He lay against her, rigid in her arms.

Thoughts began to course through his head like a river of fire. Deathevn is only sleeping. The dragon within me lives. I bring danger to everyone near me. But as he was thinking these terrible things, he also thought about Katt: her emerald green eyes, the warm embrace that she held him in, her heart beating fast as a rabbit's against his ribs.

Suddenly, and without warning, a conversation with Nina he had had returned to him.

They had been sitting atop the roof, much like him and Katt had so many days ago. A shadow appeared over the moon as a great bird flew by, eclipsing its silver light. Nina sighed, though her anger at Mina had long since vanished, the sadness she felt at her sister's absence would be with her as long as she lived.

Ryu noticed, and hoping to draw her attention to happier things, he said, "So I understand you talked to your parents when we returned to Windia."

Nina smiled, thankful for the presence of her friend. "Yes, I did." Her mind returned to the conversation between her and her parents. They had told her why she had been sent away as a child. We were weak, they had confessed. We didn't want to confront the legends so we sent you away instead. But now, they assured her, they would change. Already they were denouncing the curse and had publicly admitted Nina as a long lost princess, their daughter. While it had nearly caused an uproar at first, much of the population now had let go of the years of superstition and were willing to accept the black-winged princess.

Her eyes met Ryu, and she understood, if not exactly how or why, that they were in much the same situation. She wanted to help him, tell him something to make him feel better.

She looked him in the eye and said, "Destiny only has as much a hold on you as you allow it."

_Destiny only has as much of a hold on you as you allow it to._

Ryu gave up thinking. His mind, always so rational, was left behind as he followed his heart in whatever direction it took him. He felt open and vulnerable, but he did not shy away.

Ryu went limp in Katt's arms for a moment, and then he clasped his arms tightly around her back. His lips brushed against her ears as he said softly, "Katt, the dragon is still there. But why should we let that stop us?"

* * *

Ryu and Katt sat alone in the clearing in front of the gates to Infinity. He sat cross-legged peacefully, and she lay with her head on his lap.

He watched her chest, rising and falling in time with her shallow breathing. Soon it grew steadier. She was purring again. As if sensing his gaze, Katt turned over in his lap and opened one eye sleepily.

He patted her on the head. "Good night kitty Katt."

She closed her eyes again with a small smile on her face, "Good night Ryu."

Ryu glanced up at the sky. The sun had long since set and the first stars were twinkling into existence. He smiled. The curse wasn't broken, and his destiny was still intact. The gates in front of them stood cold, uninviting, and unwavering, in need of a guardian, a protector. And yet he smiled. His destiny was intact, but he refused to let it ruin this beautiful night. Because in his own way, he had already broken his curse.

And despite everything that had happened, and everything that would happen, he was not upset, or angry, or frightened. Because in his heart, he had known this would be the ending all along. Instead, he felt his heart lift at the thought that he still had one last beautiful, star-lit night with Katt.


	4. Thoughts

Lindze

I think this is a good point. I added the scene because, I believe I received a criticism from someone else that I didn't include the other characters enough. I wanted to portray a world in which the Nina/Ryu relationship wasn't even a question. A picture of what it would look like if Katt and Ryu had her blessing. This was the best way I figured I could accomplish this while keeping with the context of the story. Looking back however, I feel you're right in saying that it would be impossible for her to slip back into Windian society so easily. History has shown superstition is a powerful thing even when the people have no idea what the root of their irrational beliefs are (Nazi Germany).

Narwhale

I know what you mean. But I don't exactly agree. The way Capcom left everything open ended is the reason you and me and Joe Shmoe can share their interpretations of what happened. If Capcom fleshed out everything they imagined in the game, what would be left for us to write about? Just my take, I appreciate your review and am glad you enjoyed the story. And by the way, even though I prefer Katt, Nina one of my favorite video game characters, that's how awesome this game was.

Yuriski-1st

The first time I played the game of course I got the ending without the flying Township. I play all my games (or try to) without walkthroughs the first time through. I don't think anyone found that hidden staircase without looking at a walkthrough. And anyway I always liked that ending better. Its all noble and stuff and brings the story of his mother and the guardians full circle. The flying Township always seemed a little deus ex machina to me.

The Crimson Wave

I was never looking to rewrite a story in the context of the plot of the game. I only used the plot as a loose outline. The direction I was trying to take was something that could have been with some imagination. Because granted, anything involving a Ryu/Katt relationship (or anything other than Ryu/Nina really) is going to require some imagination and deviate from the original context and plot of the game simply because Capcom leans so heavily towards a Ryu/Nina pairing. As for how I know how Ryu is interested in Katt or vice versa- I don't. That's just my interpretation based on my feelings for the characters. I think everyone should be welcome to their own whether or not they are supported by events in the game. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that the context that I wrote the story in is a scene where Ryu and Katt are sort of in their own little world. While it's true that it's impractical when looked at as a subset of the plot of the entire game, I feel like if it's only taken at face value, the events and biases aren't that unrealistic. As for the personality thing, you're absolutely right. I noticed that after I finished writing it. Katt should be made of stronger stuff than I portrayed in this story. But them's the breaks. Who knows, maybe she's got a soft side that she's never shown anyone before. Maybe after she comes in from beating up on monsters she goes upstairs and puts on fancy dresses and sleeps with teddy bears.

HazzaTL3

I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'll be straight- as of now, I have no intention of adding to this story (may do other Breath of Fire fics though) since I am pretty happy with the way I ended it. That being said, anyone is free to continue with the story line in whatever way you see fit. Just drop me a message or comment so I can make a note for readers to check out any additions.


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